The present invention relates generally to folding knives and in particular to a folding knife having means for actuating one or more knife blades from a closed position to an open position and the reverse.
The typical folding knife has a handle member and one or more blades, pivotally mounted within a channel in the handle member. The typical folding knife may have a liner member or liner members juxtaposed the one or more blades. To prevent accidental opening of the knife, each blade may be biased in the closed position by a mechanism such as a spring or detent. To open the blade, the user may insert a thumbnail of one hand into a notch or groove near the back edge of the blade, and manually rotate the blade around its pivot point while holding the handle member. Some folding knives may employ a thumb stud or hole on the blade to facilitate opening the blade with one hand.
There are a number of folding knives with various mechanisms for opening the knife blade. However, none of them open the knife blade as contemplated by the present invention. Typically, these knives utilize wheel or gear mechanisms that rotate the blade upon actuation by a user. U.S. Pat. No. 2,416,277 to S. Siegel discloses a pocket knife having a rack mounted to the blade to rotate the blade when an externally extending portion of an operating member is pulled. U.S. Pat. No. 4,719,700 to Taylor, Jr. discloses a knife having a concentric wheel. When the user exerts a force to slide the actuator, the user-exerted force is transmitted by the non-extensible linkage to rotate the wheel, thereby pivoting the blade from its closed position to its open position. U.S. Pat. No. 5,331,741 to Taylor, Jr. discloses a knife having a knife with a thumb-actuated lever having an opening lever driving a sector gear that engages a drive gear for opening the knife blade. U.S. Pat. No. 5,495,674 to Taylor, Jr. discloses a knife having a user actuated button slidably mounted to a casing. The button is disposed on the end of an elongated shaft which extends through a spring, pawl, casing, and a blade.
The present invention comprises a folding knife having a mechanism to allow the user to open and close the blade with one hand. The folding knife depicted has a blade opening mechanism that allows for user control over the blade during opening and closing with the blade opening mechanism operating in a smooth fashion. The blade opening mechanism, the blade actuator, does not rely on momentum to move or rotate the blade.
The present invention discloses a folding blade knife which may comprise a handle member, having a handle member front end and a back end, and including at least one upper handle member and at least one lower handle member defining a channel. The knife may further include a blade member, having a blade member front end and a back end, said blade member back end may be pivotally mounted to said handle member front end and within the channel. The blade member may have a closed position and an open position with respect to the handle member. The knife may further include a pivotal mounting means formed, in the preferred embodiment, of a pivotal member pivotally mounting said blade member back end proximal to said handle member front end.
An actuator means or system is utilized to transmit rotational motion to the blade. The actuator means or system may be composed, for example, of a switch slidably mounted to a handle member, and as depicted herein for convenience in illustration, to at least one upper handle member and joined to the blade member back end, for actuation by a user, such that when the user exerts a force against the switch to slide said actuator with respect to the handle member, the user-exerted force is transmitted to the blade member back end to rotate the blade member. It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that an actuator means or system switch or handle may be positioned on an upper or lower handle member.
In the preferred embodiment, the actuator means or system comprises generally a slidable switch interconnected with a linking mechanism affixed to the blade member such as to exert rotational force on the blade member. In this invention, the actuator means or system may comprise at least one link member slidably mounted within an actuator slot by, but not limited to, pin and bushing mechanisms. The actuator slot is, in the preferred embodiment, positioned in a liner and, as depicted herein, within an upper liner member. The actuator means may further comprise at least one elongated member, having an elongated member front end and a back end, where the elongated member back end may be rotatably joined to the at least one link member via pin and bushing mechanism. Pin and bushing mechanisms referred to here include generally means of interconnecting bushing or bearing means to a link member and within a slot; in this instance a pin and bushing interconnects a link member and a slot, denominated herein as a actuator slot, and additionally, a link member to an elongated member with both the link member and the elongated member interconnected to an actuator slot. Additionally, depicted herein at the pin and bushing joining the link member to the actuator slot is a switch link pin.
In the preferred embodiment, the actuator means or system exerts rotational force on the blade member by joinder of the least one elongated member front end to the blade member proximal the blade member back end. The joining mechanism or means depicted herein is a blade pin member protruding from the blade member proximal the blade member back end. The blade pin member may be affixed by affixing means including forging, welding, screw, thread and other affixing means, to the blade member back end and extend through the pin slot, such that the blade pin member is received by the pin slot and is positioned proximal the pin slot back end when the blade member is in the closed position and the blade pin member is positioned proximal the pin slot front end when the blade member is in the open position. The blade pin member, when extended through the pin slot is affixed by affixing means proximal the elongated member front end and in the preferred embodiment the blade pin member is received into an aperture proximal the elongated member front end denominated herein as the elongated member aperture.
A switch, lever, or the like member, is slidable affixed at a handle member, and as shown in the preferred embodiment, an upper handle member at a switch slot. The switch may be affixed within a switch slot by means including, as depicted herein, as a switch slide formed generally of a flat element, affixed to the switch, of a dimension greater than that of the width of the switch slot; the switch is further affixed to linking means comprised for example of at least one switch link pin to thereby facilitate the exertion of slidable force against the link member to slide the link member and elongated member with respect to the handle member, actuator slot and pin slot. The switch may be interconnected to the link member by a switch link pin or equivalent interconnection means. The preferred embodiment depicts a pin denominated here as the switch link pin, at the pin and bushing mechanism interconnecting the link member with the actuator slot; the switch link pin is received by a link member aperture and a switch pin aperture thereby illustrating one means of interconnecting a switch with a link member.
The folding blade knife may farther comprise a pin slot, formed within a handle member or the at least one upper or lower handle member or the at least one upper or lower liner member or a combination of the at least one upper or lower handle member and the at least one upper or lower liner member, proximal the handle member front end, upper or lower handle member front end or upper or lower liner member front end and arched around the pivotal member. The pin slot may have a pin slot front end and a back end. In the preferred embodiment, the pin slot may define an arc, composed of a half-circle arc in the preferred embodiment, with respect to the pivotal member, the pivotal member defining a circle center relative to the half-circle arc. The pin slot back end, the pin slot front end, and the pivotal member may be configured in a substantially linear arrangement thereby defining a diameter from the pin slot back end, pin slot front end, and through the pivotal member. Preferably, the substantially linear arrangement of the pin slot back end, the pin slot front end, and the pivotal member is substantially at a forty-five degree angle with respect to normal.
In the preferred embodiment, the knife may further comprise an actuator slot, formed within a handle member, the at least one upper or lower handle member or the at least upper or lower liner member, having a linear portion and an arc potion. The actuator slot performing the function of guiding the pin and bushing mechanisms interconnecting the link member and switch and the link member and elongated member as force is exerted by the switch to provide rotational force to the blade member. The actuator slot in the preferred embodiment having a linear portion front end and a back end, and an arc portion having an arc portion front end and a back end. The actuator slot arc portion may be positioned proximal the handle member front end between the pin slot and the pivotal member with said actuator slot linear portion extending a distance distal from the actuator slot arc portion back end. The actuator slot linear portion may extend in a substantially horizontal direction in the same horizontal plane as the pivotal member.
To operate, a user may hold the knife in one hand. The user""s thumb may push the switch, lever, or actuator forward towards the handle member front end and thereby exerting force on switch link pin and hence the elongated member with their respective pin and bushing mechanisms causing the blade pin member to travel in the pin slot from pin slot back end toward pin slot front end thereby rotatably moving the blade member from the closed position toward the open position. The user""s thumb may pull the switch, lever, actuator, or like member towards the handle member back end and thereby move the blade member towards the close position.
The folding blade knife may further comprise means, joined to the actuator, to lock the blade member in the closed position. The locking means may include, but is not limited to, a combination lock member, having a shaft, affixed to the actuator. In one embodiment, the combination lock member may lock the blade member upon closing as the switch, lever, or like member is pulled towards the handle member back end. In other embodiments, the user may be required to turn dials, buttons or the like on the combination lock member to thereby lock the blade member in the closed position.